domestic courts – Page 10 – International Justice Resource Center

News Clips – May 23, 2010

May 23, 2010 IJRC civil litigation, discrimination, domestic courts, environmental rights, immigration & asylum, Inter-American System, internationalized criminal tribunals, security & rule of law, torture, U.S. courts, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights

Protests continue in Thailand as Asian Centre for Human Rights decries international community’s silence and the EU Parliament and Human Rights Watch express concern over violence, emergency provisions, and censorship. The BBC has provided a detailed overview of the situation. Human Rights Watch urges new British government to reform counterterrorism strategies and investigate British agents’ complicity in torture and rendition. [HRW] Related cases decided by the

News Clips

May 1, 2010 IJRC discrimination, domestic courts, economic, social & cultural rights, environmental rights, international criminal law, regional human rights protection, security & rule of law

Protests and celebrations commemorate International Workers’ Day around the world. [NPR, AP] For information on international labor standards and agreements, visit the International Labour Organization’s website. Omar Khadr boycotted the second day of his Military Commission evidentiary hearings yesterday when he was required to wear sensory deprivation equipment while being transported to the courthouse [Impunity Watch] the Extraordinary Chambers in the

UN Announces Legal Aid Fund for Iraqi Detainees

April 28, 2010 IJRC domestic courts, security & rule of law, torture, Universal system

The United Nations announced today that, since late last year, 20 legal defense centers have been providing free legal assistance to Iraqi detainees to help them defend themselves in criminal proceedings. The Programme for the Protection of Detainees and Torture Victims, funded by the European Union and implemented by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), is operating in

Political Violence in Nicaragua Worries IACHR

April 27, 2010 IJRC domestic courts, Inter-American System

In a press release issued today, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights expressed its concern over acts of violence committed in Nicaragua last week. The Commission reports: During the incidents serious disturbances took place, dozens of individuals were detained, property was burned, and shots were fired. The Commission learned that these acts were undertaken to prevent the functioning of the

UN Expert Welcomes U.K. 'Vulture Fund' Ban

April 20, 2010 IJRC domestic courts, UN Special Procedures

The United Nations independent expert on foreign debt and human rights issued a statement today, welcoming the British parliament’s passage of a new law earlier this month which will have the effect of banning ‘vulture funds’ created to profit off the foreign debt of developing countries by essentially buying the debt for a highly reduced price (often when the debt

Argentine Officer Sentenced to 15 Years for Dirty War Abuses

April 13, 2010 IJRC domestic courts, international criminal law, liberty & security of person, right to life

Former army intelligence officer Horacio Barcos was sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment by the Tribunal Oral Federal in Santa Fe, Argentina on Monday in the culmination of his prosecution for alleged crimes against humanity committed during the Dirty War, presided over by Jorge Rafael Videla‘s military dictatorship. Barcos was sentenced to 11 years in prison for the crimes of illegal

Judge Orders Release of Guantanamo Detainee Mohamedou Slahi

April 9, 2010 IJRC liberty & security of person, security & rule of law, U.S. courts

Today, the ACLU made available on its website D.C. District Court Judge James Robertson’s order granting Guantanamo Bay detainee Mohamedou Ould Slahi’s petition for writ of habeas corpus (here). The decision, handed down on March 22, was under seal pending release of an unclassified version. Judge Robertson’s decision comes over eight years after Slahi’s initial detention in Senegal in November

Spain's Baltasar Garzón Faces Prosecution for Investigation of Franco-Era Crimes

April 8, 2010 IJRC domestic courts, universal jurisdiction

Spanish Judge Baltasar Garzón will be tried in connection with his judicial investigation into the enforced disappearances of thousands of individuals and other atrocities committed during Spain’s civil war (1936-1939) and the dictatorship of General Francisco Franco (1939-1975). Charges against the judge were brought by private actors, two right-wing interest groups, one of which was the State political party (Falange

1983 Beirut Bombing Victims Awarded $1 Billion in Punitive Damages

April 4, 2010 IJRC civil litigation, security & rule of law, U.S. courts

On March 31, the U.S. District Court for the District of Colombia issued its final judgment in Valore v. Islamic Republic of Iran, awarding the survivors and victims’ estates over $1 billion in damages. The plaintiffs alleged tort liability under the amended the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act and District of Colombia law for the deaths, injuries, and pain and suffering caused

D.C. District Court Dismisses as Moot 105 Habeas Petitions of Transferred Guantanamo Detainees

April 3, 2010 IJRC liberty & security of person, security & rule of law, U.S. courts

On April 1st, in its consideration of 105 habeas petitions presented by non-U.S. citizens formerly held at Guantanamo, the U.S. District Court for the District of Colombia held that such petitions become moot when the individuals have been transferred to foreign countries. The petitioners had filed their habeas petitions while still detained at Guantanamo and, following their release or transfer